itch

I tilt the angle Of my fingertip
Deepening the pressure
As my nail pinches and pulls off The hardened skin on my palm

Underneath the skin is new Taking its first breath
Of this heavy air

Patchwork scales Surround the tear
Skin with peeling edges Not glued down
Splits squinting through All woven together
To shield me

I am protective of these patches They are mine
To notice Scratch Bleed (Hide) Heal Ruin Repair Correct

My deluded brain thinks that
That this solitary maintenance
Sometimes
I scratch my skin further
Ripping it all off
Wounds opening wide
Violet veins rupturing
Glands gasping
As I scrunch this flesh sack up
Tightly into a ball
Condensing my physical form down
Until I can’t feel it anymore

Other times
Transcending above
The body that ‘defines’ me
Is enlightenment
That distance
Brings perspective
To connect me
With the red rawness
Of my being
And convince my body
That they belong
To me.